I feel like the baby has been sick this entire Winter. I believed the doctor when she said a baby could get 7 or 8 colds in one Winter, but this is getting ridiculous.

Last week, around Wednesday, he was finally feeling better. He laid down on the couch for a nap around noon — I figured he’d wake up in an hour and have lunch. I sat on the couch next to him, enjoying a peaceful snack and a game of Words With Friends. I looked at the clock and realized it had been three entire hours since he had fallen asleep. Three hours?! Within minutes, he was stirring, making a few noises, and before I knew it — he was puking.

Watching a baby throw up is incredibly sad. What else can you do, but hold them so they don’t choke on it. Do you know how hard it is to try to hold their head over a bucket? Nearly impossible. We ended up calling the doctor and she told us there is a bad stomach bug going around — it would probably result in 12 hours of puking and another 7 days of diarrhea. That night, he slept on the floor in the living room and I slept on the couch to keep an eye on him.

The next day the diarrhea started. And for days to follow. I can’t even put him in clothes (I’m sorry if you’re eating — if you have small children hopefully talking about puke and poop and diarrhea doesn’t bother you TOO much) because every time he’d go it would leak all over the place.

We’re on day 6 of diarrhea hell. About 4 days in he came down with the worst diaper rash he’d ever had. I think for the entire first year of his life he didn’t get a diaper rash. But this — this was insane. And with every dirty diaper it was getting worse. To the point where I’d go to just check his diaper and he’s start screaming at me.

The pediatrician recommended Triple Paste. We couldn’t find it in the store so we ended up with Balmex. It’s thick, a lot thicker than something like Desitin, which is what we normally keep around the house. So I started the regimen of using the Balmex, along with Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder with Pure Cornstarch. Using those few things, along with not using regular baby wipes, but actually using a gentle hand/face wipe to just wipe a little and then using a towel for the rest of the way, has really helped. In less than 24 hours his rash was almost completely gone. I’m so thankful, it makes dealing with the diarrhea a little bit easier if it’s not so incredibly painful for him.

And Pedialyte. Lots and lots of Pedialyte.

So, that’s what I’ve been up to (and a few of my most recent baby recommendations thrown in there for you, too).